Unlike the Avengers series of movies by Marvel, the X-Men films seem to have been on the decline for some time. The last one was The Wolverine, which got slightly above average reviews. At the box office, it did really well in worldwide totals, but that is mostly due to increased ticket sales overseas, coming at a time when more people in China and Russia and other countries are going to the movies than they used to. Here in the USA, it was the lowest grossing X-Men movie ever. The franchise is sort of in need of a change, while retaining its star Hugh Jackman, though personally I’m a bit tired of him as well. (Obviously the people behind these movies disagree, as he has been the focal or near-focal of every film so far.) That’s where X-Men: Days of Future Past comes in.
It is the future now, and mankind has created a weapon, sort of like robots called Sentinels, that seek out mutants and kill them. Things go wrong though when they turn on man as well, and a huge world war has virtually wiped out civilization. The X-Men decide the only way to prevent it is to send Wolverine’s consciousness back in time to 1973 where he can control his younger self and prevent events that lead to the creation of the Sentinels. The movie blends the cast of the original X-Men movies with the attempted reboot of a few years ago. X-Men First Class, which received great reviews (87% on Rotten Tomatoes) and I personally really enjoyed, did not blow anyone away at the box office.
The newest X-Men film is good, though it does seem a little “wordy” at times and felt a little long as well. The effects are really good as always, and the climax is a little unexpected and welcome. However, it does set up for a change in the series that, while the film series probably needed a shot in the arm, I’m not sure I like it. I’m not going to give anything away, but the ending leaves things very open ended. It feels very much like another reboot, something this series seems to be having a few too many of lately.
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